Stairways vary in their pitch from about 29 degrees up to about 43 degrees, with the normal stairway having a pitch or angle of inclination of about 36 degrees. Because of these variations in the pitch or inclination of stairs, it is difficult to make a satisfactory preassembled wooden stair rail or balustrade. In this regard certain metal assemblies have been proposed which permit changing of the pitch; however these are generally relatively unstable and unsightly. Further, in the field of variable inclination wooden stair rail assemblies, reference made to Howard Suckno U.S. Pat. No. 4,272,061, granted June 9, 1968. However, the assembly shown in this patent has serious shortcomings, particularly in view of the transverse orientation of the pins upon which the rail pivots, and the resulting problems presented by this construction. Specifically, the transverse pins in the stair rail are unsightly, and result in a very weak and unstable assembly, so that if a person chances to exert some pressure with his foot on the shoe rail, the pin is likely to split out of the shoe rail and permanently destroy the stair rail assembly. For these reasons, the producers of the Suckno variable pitch railing recommend that the shoe rail be supported by extra blocks between the shoe rail and the stairs at intervals along its length. Another shortcoming of the Suckno arrangement is its intended applicability to both horizontal runs and also to inclined stair railings. With the same distance between pivot points on the shoe rail and the handrail, the spacing between the balusters is reduced on the inclined sections of the stair rail assembly as compared to on the horizontal sections, and this significant variation runs contrary to architectural practices and aesthetic appearances, thereby further detracting from the appearance of the complete stair railing installation. Accordingly, both from an aesthetic point of view because of the improper baluster spacing and the appearance of the pivot points extending through the sides of the handrail and the shoe rail, as well as from a mechanical point of view, with the mechanical weakensses mentioned hereinabove, the Suckno units are wholly unsatisfactory for high quality residential or business usage.
A principal object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a high quality variable pitch wooden or solid railing or balustrade assembly which overcomes the problem mentioned hereinabove with regard to the Suckno system. More specifically, the unsightly pivot points should not appear in the railing, the spacing between the balusters in both horizontal and vertical sections should be substantially the same, and the units should have high strength and rigidity comparable to a conventional completely custom installation.